One Ring to Rule Them All
by morningstar2
Summary: Mokuba is hosting a Return of the King Premiere party. Will Seto survive the night? Warning: small spoilers. Chap 2- The ring comes to Mokuba
1. Default Chapter

Alright, I have taken a break from my usual style of angst. Warning: this story deals heavily with the Lord of the Rings- both the books and movies. If you dislike those you probably will dislike this. I am myself a huge LOTR geek, and yes, I wore a costume on opening night for the Two Towers. Geeks do that kind of thing : ) Make sure to review so I know whether or not to continue. I don't know if people will like this. At this point I'm just writing it for me.  
  
***  
  
Mokuba opened the door to his big brother's office and peeked inside. As he suspected, his brother was sitting at his desk, typing away on his computer. Though he had no proof, Mokuba was sure that Seto had been sitting there for nearly five hours. Quietly he walked to his brother's side and glanced at the computer screen. The sheer amount of numbers listed instantly made his head swim. How did Seto do it? Ahh, the answer perched next to the keyboard: a large mug with the dregs of cold coffee lining the bottom.  
  
It was too perfect. Here his brother sat, tired and preoccupied, and on the last stretch of a caffeine boost. Mokuba allowed himself an evil smile before schooling his face into that of an innocent cherub. Too perfect and too easy.  
  
"Big brother," Mokuba caught Seto's attention. Being the devoted brother he was, Seto sighed and turned away from his work. "Yes, what is it?"  
  
"I was wondering, will you take me to see The Return of the King on Wednesday? I know it's opening night, but I've been waiting all year for it to come out."  
  
Seto considered this. Going to the movies with his little brother would require little contact with other human beings. His brother had been behaving himself well, as usual, and was getting good marks at school. It was a reasonable request, and besides, Seto was a Tolkien fan himself.  
  
"Alright, Mokuba."  
  
"Thanks big brother! You're the best!" And Mokuba, after hugging Seto, proceeded to the next stage of his plan. "I'm so excited! I read that they're going to start with Gollum finding the ring, except that he's still Smeagol at that point. I wonder if they'll make Smeagol look like a hobbit. In the book it said that his people were related to hobbits, which is why Gollum and Bilbo both knew riddles."  
  
As Mokuba rambled on, he carefully watched Seto's face. Only a few sentences in to Mokuba's ramble, Seto began to glance longingly at the computer screen.  
  
". And Yugi says that they won't have the House of Healing, but where will Aragorn heal Merry and Eowyn and Faramir? I suppose he could just heal them on the battle field."  
  
Now Seto had turned back to his work. His eyes were beginning to glaze over. Just a little longer.  
  
". Of course Aragorn is with a whole host of rangers at that point, but I think the movie will just focus on him, Legolas and Gimli. Not that I mind."  
  
Perfect! Seto wore a blank expression as he stared at the monitor, clicking on the scroll button absently.  
  
".And so I told Yugi that we could have the premiere party at our house, and that we should all dress as characters. I was hoping to go all out; we could serve Ent draught and Lembas and play fun games. It's been a long time since you let me have a party. so could we? Please?"  
  
Seto's exhausted mind was going over figures from his company's latest models of virtual reality games. 'The average gamer spent about twenty minutes on the first level, which was almost half the time spent in the first model. The time increased exponentially as the levels progressed.' Wait, Mokuba had just asked him something. Seto closed his eyes and tried to recall the last few sentences. He didn't want his little brother to think that he had been ignoring him; Mokuba deserved better than that. Damn it, what had he asked? Something about dressing as characters? Did Mokuba want to wear costumes to the theater? Seto sighed. He really didn't need the attention that a CEO would get from such behavior. On the other hand, if that was what Mokuba wanted, Seto supposed he could buy out the showing. That way no one would see the dignified Seto Kaiba of Kaiba Corp. dressed as an elf.  
  
Seto glanced back down at Mokuba, who waited patiently for an answer. He looked positively angelic. "I suppose it's okay." Seto said.  
  
"Great!" Mokuba grinned. "I'll call the others!" He called over his shoulder as he sprinted out of the room. He winked at the security camera posted above the door, which had preserved the authenticity of Seto's promise. And then he was gone.  
  
Eyes widening, Seto groaned. Dear lord, what had he done?!  
  
***  
  
This was going to be the best Lord of the Rings party ever thrown, Mokuba promised himself. He picked up the phone and dialed Yugi's number. Yugi answered on the third ring.  
  
"Hi Yugi!" Mokuba greeted excitedly. "Guess what? Seto said I could have the party. Is Wednesday all right? You all can cone around three, have supper here, and then we can all go to the movie together!"  
  
"Sounds great," Yugi answered. It was a stroke of luck that school was closed for that day due to teacher conferences. "Should I bring anything?"  
  
"No, just yourself. But you have to dress up! Because I called you first, you can choose any character. except Frodo. That will be me."  
  
"Oh?" Yugi smiled, imagining the young Kaiba as a hobbit. Actually, the role fit Mokuba well. He was the right size for it. as was Yugi. "I'll need a while to chose. By the way, will your brother be joining us?"  
  
"Of course." Mokuba had complete confidence in his persuasion abilities. Where Seto had money and power and a frightening reputation, Mokuba had big eyes, sad eyes.  
  
"That's nice to hear." Yugi had complete confidence in the all-conquering power of friendship. Maybe Seto was finally warming up to them.  
  
After hanging up, Mokuba glanced at his invitation list. There were a lot of people to call, but he didn't mind. He would make this the best party ever! And, even if it were the death of him, he'd make sure Seto would attend.  
  
***  
  
Joey sat down at the cafeteria table, wedging himself between Yami and Yugi. The pharaoh glared at Joey boy before continuing his conversation over the blond boy's head. "I don't understand why the books and the movies are such a big deal."  
  
Joey interrupted. "Ya haven't read them, I take it?"  
  
"I've had nearly four centuries of literature to catch up on, okay?"  
  
"Well, that's no excuse for not dressing up," Yugi told his yami with a smile. "Personally, I think you should go as Legolas."  
  
Joey grinned. "Personally, I think you should go as Sauron. You've already got the glowing eye."  
  
Further down the table, Tristen sat next to Duke, playing with the school's food-like substance on his tray. A thought occurred to him. "Hey Joey," he called. "Who's Serenity going as?"  
  
"Gee, I don't know. The elf lady. Arwen?"  
  
"I'm going as Aragorn!" Tristen and Duke chorused. They exchanged death- filled glares. "I called it first." Tristen complained.  
  
Joey turned to Yugi. "So." he said, pointedly ignoring the rising argument near by. "How's life going for you?"  
  
***  
  
Seto stepped into the small store, a bell above the door announcing his entrance. He couldn't believe he was doing this. He couldn't believe Mokuba had persuaded him to attend the party he had unknowingly agreed to host. Why was he doing this? Every time he wondered, he had come to the conclusion that no force of man or nature could make him go. Then Mokuba would walk into the room with hopeful, pleading eyes and Seto found himself agreeing. What had happened to his will of steel?  
  
But what was done was done, and Seto couldn't go back on his word. That didn't mean he would go all out or anything. He could simply circle the guests, throwing enough hard looks to discourage any intended interaction. Then he could retreat to his room. It was a good plan.  
  
Seto gazed appreciatively around the store. Swords of every shape, size, and material lined the walls. There were delicate throwing knives, elegant katana swords, and powerful two-handed swords. Glass cases held the most valuable merchandise- beautiful blades with jewels embedded in the hilts and authentic middle age shirkins. Each wall bore a sign that told customers not to handle the swords without assistance.  
  
The fact that he was here, Seto told himself, had little to do with the party. He had agreed to appear in costume, and Seto figured that a sword would count. But Seto had always loved swords and sword fighting and had considered buying one for a while now. The party simply posed an initiative to do so. That was all; the idea that he was getting into the spirit was simply absurd.  
  
Unfortunately, that didn't explain why everything was suddenly reminding him of The Lord of the Rings.  
  
Just that morning, while putting on gloves, he had wondered if gauntlets would be more appropriate for a ranger or a rider of Rohan.  
  
And as he sat- bored as usual- in math class he had mentally placed Mai in the roles of each female Lord of the Rings character.  
  
No, he wasn't getting into the spirit.  
  
A gleam of silver caught Seto's eye, and he walked over to a large glass case. Resting gracefully on black velvet lay a broadsword. It was a pale silver and was polished to a pearly white glow. The handle was fairly simple, but just below the hilt an ornate dragon curved around the blade. The detail was stunning; Seto could see each scale and individual teeth in fine relief. However, it was the dragon's eyes that really enraptured him. They were sapphires, set in such a way that they glared fiercely down the length of the sword.  
  
Not many things made Seto smile, but the thought of him wielding that sword brought a smile to his face. Besides, he told himself, he had told Mokuba that he would come in costume. 


	2. The ring comes to Mokuba

A few notes before I begin: Sorry this took so long. I hope it hasn't lost its appeal now that RotK is out. Actually, I was surprised (but happy!) about its appeal. I had no idea so many people were interested in this thread : )  
  
Thank you to Firelien for pointing out my error in having spoilers. It was very inconsiderate of me to write those without a warning, and I'm glad you told me. I honestly wouldn't have noticed otherwise.  
  
About Yami having a body. yes, that is a plot hole. I don't know how they managed it, but all the yamis in the story will have bodies. After all, it's hard to dress up while existing as a spirit. My other stories don't have this plot hole.  
  
Sorry about the lack of Merik and Bakura. They will come soon.  
  
One last thing! I accidentally had Yami tell Joey that he had 'four centuries of literature to catch up on.' I think I meant millenniums. Hey, has anyone noticed what crown Yami is wearing when he is shown in hieroglyphics: upper, lower, both, or none?  
  
On with the story!  
  
* * *  
  
Tristen often walked home with Joey, his blond friend's house being en route with his. Today was no different, and the two boys talked about school, friends, and duel monsters. School was the same as ever. None of their friends had been kidnapped lately, and there were no major tournaments playing. The topics of conversation soon ran dry, and the boys fell into a comfortable silence.  
  
As they turned on to Joey's street, Tristen spoke up. "So," he said casually. "How's Serenity doing?"  
  
Joey rolled his eyes. He liked it that his sister got along with his friends. Really, he did. He just didn't like how well some of his friends got along with her. It just felt wrong. Joey knew Serenity was only a few years younger than himself, but to him she would always be his baby sis. The thought of her and Tristen. . . it was wrong. But what could he do?  
  
Huh. What could he do?  
  
"Serenity's okay. Ya know, she's really excited about that party coming up. Turns out she's always loved the Lord of the Rings; she says the books inspire her. She even knows some Elvish."  
  
"Really?" Tristen had never heard Serenity talk about Lord of the Rings, but then again, they rarely had long, deep discussions about books.  
  
"Yeah. She told me that Elvish is the most romantic language she's heard. It gets her down that no one here can speak it to her."  
  
They had reached Joey's house. Tristen turned to face his friend. "Romantic?" He stuttered.  
  
Joey shrugged nonchalantly. "Yep. Romantic. Well, see ya tomorrow." And he ducked quickly into his home.  
  
"Hey, Joey, is that you?" Serenity walked into the room, carrying with her a large bowl of cereal. Joey smiled. Despite the fact that she was a petite girl, she ate like a teenage boy. It must be in the Wheeler's genes, Joey figured as he headed towards the kitchen, dumping his backpack along the way. His sister trailed behind him, munching happily.  
  
After they had exchanged stories about their school day and finished their snack, Serenity began her homework at the kitchen table. Joey sat for a while, uncharacteristically quiet as he studied the moment of domestic happiness.  
  
"So, sis," he broke the silence. "Do you know any Elvish?"  
  
Serenity was confused. "Um, no."  
  
Joey nodded, satisfied. "I didn't think so."  
  
* * *  
  
Mokuba was sprawled on the floor doing his homework when Seto came home. "Hey big brother," he greeted cheerfully as he stood up and stretched. "Where have you been?"  
  
Seto ignored the question. "What have I told you about proper studying habits? You should sit at a desk; Lord knows we have plenty of them."  
  
For the length the reprimand, Mokuba had been eyeing the bags in Seto's hand with curiosity. Seto rarely bought anything himself. He despised the hordes of people found at markets and malls. Catching his little brother's gaze, Seto flashed a Cheshire smile and reached into a bag. There was a metallic glint as he pulled out a ring on a silver chain and held it to the light.  
  
"The One Ring!" Mokuba started to take the offered ring, but Seto held the small trinket out of his reach. "Please, big brother? I won't lose it," he pleaded.  
  
"Oh, that's not what I'm worried about."  
  
"Then what are you-" Mokuba paused, his eyes narrowing. "You're not trying to get out of the party again!"  
  
Seto sighed. "No, I already agreed to go, so I'll go. But I will not sit with those children at the theater."  
  
Mokuba was instantly downcast. "But I wanted to sit with my big brother and my friends," he said, inflicting the sentence with enough sorrow for a Shakespearean tragedy.  
  
Seto could feel his will slipping. Damn it, not again! Holding his brother in a stern gaze, Seto held the One Ring in a tantalizing manner. "I will not sit next to anyone who makes snide comments during the battle scenes."  
  
"Fine, I won't seat you next to Joey."  
  
"I refuse to listen to anyone turn the movie into a giant friendship lecture."  
  
"All right, Tea won't sit next to you."  
  
"I will destroy anyone who throws popcorn at me."  
  
Mokuba tilted his head to one side, frowning. "You won't sit near . . . yami Bakura?"  
  
With a satisfied nod, Seto conceded and dropped the golden band into Mokuba's hand, the chain pooling in his small palm. "It's made to react to body heat," Seto told him.  
  
Mokuba held the ring near his mouth and blew warm breath onto it. Slowly, red scrolling letters appeared. Mokuba broke into a dazzling grin. "Wow, thank you, Seto!" Curiosity once again won him over. "What else did you buy?"  
  
Seto showed his brother his new sword, holding it reverently in his hands. Mokuba admired the beautiful weapon. He glanced up at Seto, humor in his eyes. "Now you have a blue-eyes, white dragon sword!" 


End file.
